Wat Phra Dhammakaya has experienced its share of controversy. In 1999 and again in 2002 the temple's abbot, was accused of charges ranging from fraud and embezzlement to corruption. Social critic Sulak Sivaraksa criticized the temple's abbot for promoting greed by emphasizing donations to the temple as a way to make merit. Julian Gearing of Asiaweek commented that Widespread negative media coverage at this time was symptomatic of Wat Phra Dhammakaya being made a scapegoat for commercial malpractice in the Thai Buddhist temple community in the wake of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. Apologies to Wat Phra Dhammakaya were published in full after the Thai newspapers and TV channels concerned were successfully sued for slander in the period 2001-3. In 2006 The Thai National Office for Buddhism cleared Wat Phra Dhammakaya's abbot all accusations when he agreed to return all the allegedly embezzled funds to name of the temple. He was subsequently restored to the position of abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya.

I had found that article myself, my wife went once and was not very impresed by the merit sales. But the TV station seems quite good and non commercial. They are the nearest temple probably to us in the UK and we were thinking of visiting just to see what it was like. Their UK website seemed quite dubious to me - 45 minutes one to one talk with a monk for £5!

They are extremely good at marketing themselves. They go in the West wherever there are enough Thais, and even try to take over smaller (e.g. Lao) wats. They ask you to join their temple and contribute regular monthly donations. The monks are trained like business salesmen. Their TV station indoctrinates Thais around the whole world in a simplistic quasi-Buddhist outlook based around the notion of kamma: because Mr X gave a lot of money to our temple before he died, he was reborn as an angel in heaven, etc. Their mass gatherings and the whole organization with a remote and holy Leader remind one of the Nazi marches. In short: The Thais (who often don't know much Buddhism really) will be easily duped and will offer thousands to help build their megalomaniac Cetiya near Bangkok, but a Westerner interested in BuddhaDhamma should know better.

Thank you for the advice and information. I had my suspicions along those lines, but you have confirmed them.

Many thanks,

With Metta

Graham

gavesako wrote:They are extremely good at marketing themselves. They go in the West wherever there are enough Thais, and even try to take over smaller (e.g. Lao) wats. They ask you to join their temple and contribute regular monthly donations. The monks are trained like business salesmen. Their TV station indoctrinates Thais around the whole world in a simplistic quasi-Buddhist outlook based around the notion of kamma: because Mr X gave a lot of money to our temple before he died, he was reborn as an angel in heaven, etc. Their mass gatherings and the whole organization with a remote and holy Leader remind one of the Nazi marches. In short: The Thais (who often don't know much Buddhism really) will be easily duped and will offer thousands to help build their megalomaniac Cetiya near Bangkok, but a Westerner interested in BuddhaDhamma should know better.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.John Stuart Mill

I was out at Wat Dhammakaya last month. They are building one of the biggest campus or whatever I have ever seen, probably valued over a couple Billion in US$$ .
I watch their chanel on Thai TV sometimes but the monk who is usually on has a soporific voice and is very repetitive. That is about as much praise as I can manage of Dhammakaya.

Dear all,
Just as a post note, we decided to visit the Dhammakaya Temple and were not altogether surprised by what we found.
I don't want to go into it in detail, other than to say I wouldn't describe it as conventional Theravada Buddhism.
On a positive side, everyone was very friendly and welcoming, but I don't think we will visit again.
If anyone would like more details please contact me directly.
Witta metta
Graham

I recall over at E-sangha, a Dhammakaya monk spent quite a bit of time & effort peddling their special mediation technique. That method was the result of the founder's vision, I believe. At any rate it, it was tantric in the sense that one moves energies from point to point within the body in a certain sequence. He did not get much sympathy or support, so faded away.

bodom_bad_boy wrote:Julian Gearing of Asiaweek commented that Widespread negative media coverage at this time was symptomatic of Wat Phra Dhammakaya being made a scapegoat for commercial malpractice in the Thai Buddhist temple community in the wake of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. Apologies to Wat Phra Dhammakaya were published in full after the Thai newspapers and TV channels concerned were successfully sued for slander in the period 2001-3. In 2006 The Thai National Office for Buddhism cleared Wat Phra Dhammakaya's abbot all accusations when he agreed to return all the allegedly embezzled funds to name of the temple. He was subsequently restored to the position of abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya.

Ive been doing a little research on the Dhammakaya and they sound almost like a cult. I could be wrong tho.

GrahamR wrote:I don't want to go into it in detail, other than to say I wouldn't describe it as conventional Theravada Buddhism.
On a positive side, everyone was very friendly and welcoming, but I don't think we will visit again.

GrahamR wrote:Their UK website seemed quite dubious to me - 45 minutes one to one talk with a monk for £5!

Interesting take. What a convenient target a Wat experiencing relatively recent massive growth could provide. That's the first time I came across that possibility. What is it that makes them seem like a cult and not Theravadin though?

Not sure what this last point means, Graham. It costs 5 pounds to have a 45 minute audience with a monk?

gavesako wrote:They are extremely good at marketing themselves. They go in the West wherever there are enough Thais, and even try to take over smaller (e.g. Lao) wats. They ask you to join their temple and contribute regular monthly donations. The monks are trained like business salesmen.

The Thais (who often don't know much Buddhism really) will be easily duped and will offer thousands to help build their megalomaniac Cetiya near Bangkok, but a Westerner interested in BuddhaDhamma should know better.

gavesako wrote:They are really good at scaring people by showing them vivid images of hell and hungry ghosts, for example:

Namasakarn, Gavesako Bhikkhu. It is necessary to make the distinction between a temple training their ordained in business savvy and their ordained having this acumen from prior life experience. It is requisite of Dhammakaya's ordained that they be college educated, among other things. Many of the ordained are former businesspeople, doctors, etc.

As for the video, this wouldn't be the first time I encountered something like that. No idea where they are anymore, but I used to have pictures and verbal descriptions of pretas, hell realms, etc. from a class. This was long before I heard of Dhammakaya. They were not all from the same source, and they were not from Dhammakaya. I don't think this is so "out there". As you know, many Thai temples incorporate folk-supersitious material. This is especially true when talking of spirits, afterlife, etc. Not that I'm saying Dhammakaya partakes of the superstitous. As a matter of fact that seems to be exactly what they omit.

robertk wrote:I was out at Wat Dhammakaya last month. They are building one of the biggest campus or whatever I have ever seen, probably valued over a couple Billion in US$$ .
I watch their chanel on Thai TV sometimes but the monk who is usually on has a soporific voice and is very repetitive. That is about as much praise as I can manage of Dhammakaya.

Funny...not much at all, it seems.

jcsuperstar wrote:i have a thai friend who studied w/ lp paknam (sod?) and he says that the dhammakaya meditation taught is not the same as what lp paknam taught..
seems to be similar though

robertk wrote:the same but Dhammakay stress a bit more on giving large donations.

jcsuperstar, you have a friend who actually studied with LP Sodh of Wat Paknam? It would be interesting if you could post some information as to the differences between his teachings and those of Dhammakaya. robertk, you say it's the same meditation though. Have you learned from LP Sodh himself or from a different offshoot of his teachings than Dhammakaya?

his brother ordained under lp paknam so he(my friend) learned the style rather young but basicly the meditation is similar, but the dhammakaya version is a sort of abridgement of the lp paknam version, there may be more to it, he asked me why the dhammakaya would simplify it, i had no idea. he doesnt seem to like dhammakaya though. maybe lp paknam taught a simplified version later? i wouldnt even know who to ask about this

สัพเพ สัตตา สุขีตา โหนตุ

the mountain may be heavy in and of itself, but if you're not trying to carry it it's not heavy to you- Ajaan Suwat